Startup support with online business planning tool
Struggling to find the right startup support for your business? Let us introduce you to student, entrepreneur, and Validate user, Amanda Gibson.
Throughout this blog post, you’ll get to learn more about Amanda’s experience of developing her business and the startup ideas platform that supported her on her journey.
Introducing Amanda Gibson, founder of ‘Movement and Milestones’
Meet Amanda Gibson, director and founder of family-wellbeing business Movement and Milestones.
Amanda is an undergraduate student at The Open University, currently studying Business Management. Alongside her studies, Amanda is also developing her business in Stafford providing support to families in the early stages of babyhood.
“I have worked in childcare and early years for a number of years and launched Movement and Milestones to provide engaging classes and support for babies, toddlers, and their families.”
The Open Business Creators programme for startup support
During her studies, Amanda had the opportunity to develop her business through the Open University’s Open Business Creators programme. The programme is designed to help entrepreneurs in their early startup stages and/or help scale their startup through funding and skills support.
Included in this programme is the startup ideas platform Validate, helping people to ideate, plan, test and share entrepreneurial and innovative ideas.
“I wasn’t really sure what to expect at first. I thought it would mainly be another business planning tool but quickly realised it made me think about my business in more detail and helped me look at things I hadn’t fully considered before,” says Amanda.
“I used it to put together my portfolio and work through different areas of the business including my customers, finances, and growth plans.”
Validate startup support for funding applications
A main part of the business model canvas is the finance areas – Cost and Revenue. Validate helps entrepreneurs break down these sections through step-by-step guidance on possible cost structures and revenue paths.
When Amanda encountered the startup support platform, she found it more helpful than a traditional business model canvas.
“It encouraged me to think about areas of the business I might otherwise have overlooked … it taught me the importance of testing assumptions … [and] it helped me understand the financial side of the business in more detail, giving me confidence in my plans for growth,” says Amanda.
After finalising her business plans, she also used her completed portfolio to support her business development plans.
“It gave me a much clearer picture of the business and has since been used to support funding applications and discussions around securing a dedicated premises for Movement and Milestones. I now feel much more prepared when discussing funding and growth plans.”
Movement, milestones, and more
Amanda founded her business after having worked in childcare and early years beforehand and becoming a qualified level 3 Early Years Educator. Since then, the business has grown from moving between hired community venues to now having a dedicated studio in the works.
However, the journey to finding a suitable venue has not been easy.
“One of the biggest challenges has been growing the business while balancing family life and employment. Finding suitable venues has also been difficult, as the environment is such an important part of the experience for families attending baby and toddler classes.”
The entrepreneur won’t stop there, though. Once a dedicated venue has been secured, Amanda has big plans for her family support business.
“My goal is to create a dedicated family wellbeing and early years hub that support families from pregnancy right through to school age. I would like to offer a variety of classes for both children and parents, alongside workshops covering topics such as sleep, weaning, first aid and parental wellbeing. In the longer term, I would love to see Movement and Milestones grow into a network of hubs in other towns, either through direct expansion or franchising, so that more families can benefit from the support and community we provide.”
When asked if Validate helped tackle these challenges, Amanda talked about how it gave her a huge confidence boost and has been invaluable in developing her business.
“It helped me break things down into manageable steps and think more realistically about growth. It also encouraged me to challenge some of my assumptions and focus on decisions backed by evidence rather than just instinct.”
Challenge your assumptions
Validate helped Amanda take her business to the next level. For business owners looking to do the same thing, here is what she recommends:
“[When using Validate], take your time and be honest with your answers. It can be tempting to focus on what you hope will happen but I found it most useful when I really challenged my own assumptions and used real evidence where possible.”
“It encourages you to think about your business in a different way and consider things you didn’t think about before. It would be particularly useful for anyone in the early stages of a business or anyone looking to take a business to the next stage, as it helps bring your ideas together and gives you more confidence in your plans.”
And if you’re worried that it might be difficult to use, don’t worry!
“I found the platform easy to use and felt it covered the key areas I needed to think about when developing my business,” says Amanda.
Thank you to Amanda Gibson for sharing your journey and online learning platform experience with us. All the best with the new venue space for Movement and Milestones!
We hope this blog has helped you with finding the right startup support. We also hope that Amanda’s tips and experience with Validate has helped you take your next step on your entrepreneurial journey.
If you would like to find out more about Validate, request your free online demo for your organisation, or explore a software license for personal use here. We look forward to working with you.
